Tuesday, June 7, 2016

Caption Reviews Part 3

News first - the Vintage/Modern Contest has submissions posted, so check out the great work by those who participated. The next contest will be coming later this week and will be a repeat contest based on the poll I set up a while back.

But now to business - I FINALLY got the last few caps done for the third and final captioner review! Sorry to those who have been waiting...this was a reflection of my lack of time/motivation and not my appreciation for the time and effort you have put into your caps :)

This review will focus on some of the most consistent and prolific contributors to this site over these 10 contests, and often in past iterations as well. All of these individuals have created at least 15 captions in at least 5 different contests, which I am extremely grateful for! In order to honor this increase in productivity, I will be reviewing three captions/series per captioner, and will be also giving a brief "Things I'd like to see" blurb. This section is not meant to be negative, but rather to try and help people who are clearly committed to captioning frequently find even more ways to make their caps extra amazing! So let's get started!

Edi

Captioner Summary: Edi is the first of many long time participants on my blogs and many other blogs in the TG community. Typical caption layout is a solid background color behind a specific bold font (I'm terrible at identifying font names but I can recognize the font!) that matches the solid writing that Edi does. What always impresses me about Edi's caps is how they always have really unique stories that are told in an effective way, whether through excellent dialogue or just long narration. Often these stories have interracial or alpha/sissy themes in them, but whatever Edi puts out is always enjoyable

Things I'd Like to See:Two things that come to mind - first, I'd love to see Edi captioning on his own blog. It's possible that I may not have yet stumbled upon it, or that may not be something he is inclined to, but his work is so great I'd love to see it aggregated in one place. Secondly, I'd like to see Edi try fun layout styles. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy Edi's classic style that I described above and is demonstrated in the first two caps below. But I really liked this cap from the Gameshow Contest because of the little extra detail with the Big Brother logo and the single line next to it, and thing that would be a cool thing to see every once in a while. Now on to caps!

Caption Review #1: A selection from Emotion/Personality Contest, this cap highlights what I love about Edi's writing style and really did a good job of taking a contest theme and making it into something awesome. The slow build up of one line statements does a phenomenal job of telling a story and really depicting exactly how the character is feeling...until you get to the surprise twist near the end where he admits that he wants more. This is the epitome of an alpha/beta cap for me in a lot of ways, which isn't surprising considering that Edi created it!

Caption Review #2: This cap comes from the Gameshow Contest, which was one of a trio of great caps that Edi produced in that contest. I ended up settling on this one because I loved the theme - a "Life Swap" is a simple concept, but carried out effectively with the interracial twist and an excellent selection of an image. Tying the picture into the idea of working as a hooker was a great choice (especially given that I love this image!), and a choice that has the main character not wanting to switch back ;) Only room for improvement that I could see is that it referenced a Part one of "Life Swap"...this cap is begging for a Part 2!

Caption Review #3: The final Edi cap we get to discuss comes from the Workplace Contest and was selected because it was an excellent representation of an interracial themed cap that Edi does so well. I'm always a suck for captions tied to images that imply multiple feminized men, and this caption improves on that by writing about another male of screen who will be joining these sissified secretaries. The dialogue is fantastic - you can really sense the intern's fear and how the established sissies are coaxing him into his fate - and as always the ending has a delightful little twist that makes the whole caption that much better. Overall, a really enjoyable piece, something that Edi has done quite a lot!

Leila Stoat

Captioner Summary: Next we have the lovely Leila Stoat, another long-time participant who is always around in the TG captioning community, whether showing her works on DeviantArt or Tumblr sites or spreading a little love to others with kind comments and thoughts on caps. Truly an excellent individual, which makes it appropriate that her caps are just as excellent. Leila has some of the most eyecatching layouts you will find in the community, using colored images behind her text which always pops up with a specific font and visible colors. In terms of themes, Leila does a lot but will always write a nice sissy cap, and tends to have a lot of clever puns or storylines to keep you coming back for more!

Things I'd Like to See:On a layout level, I would like to see images be a little larger when they sometimes are only 500 pixels tall. It may just be a layout necessity or the images themselves might be small, but you can see more if the images are larger and the text size is increased. From a story writing standpoint, I'd be curious to see what the sweet Leila can do with something more naughty or explicit in nature ;)

Caption Review #1: Cap number one comes from the Workplace contest and is a testament to the beautiful layout and awesome storytelling that always marks a Leila Stoat cap. I'm a big fan of using two images when the story calls for it, and Leila found two well-matched images that blended in real well with the story involving four guys. Also, I love the idea of "worker socialization" at a bodysuit company and the classic line from the guy who says, "Don't worry, I'll swallow every drop" - the irony considering how most bodysuit caps (including this one) involve suits that seal upon contact with semen was not lost on me. Really great work on this one!

Caption Review #2: This cap appeared in the Pageant contest and again has a beautiful layout - I really loved all the colors in this image from the pink hair to the baby blue dress, and the background for the image matches it well with purples and pinks. However, I also picked this cap because of the excellent dialogue. The banter between the feminized pageant entrant and the domineering girlfriend characterizes the pair of them beautifully, with short uncertain bursts from the boyfriend and dissmissive statements from the girlfriend. The topic itself was quite simple, but excellent execution made for an awesome cap.

Caption Review #3: The final Leila cap is a two-parter from the Love contest, which was chosen because of an excellent story. Caption series of any length are generally strengthened if there is a strong link between each cap or if each cap can serve as a standalone piece - Leila does both in different ways. For me, the images serve as a nice link, with the two lovely ladies in the pics looking quite similar (especially if you consider the makeover in the second cap). But the caps also link up well, with the second one practically being its own caption. I love love love the idea of "mandatory in house makeovers" for people "not glam enough", especially considering how lovely the person in the image looks (she really does look like "Aphrodite", the name she is given in the cap). Overall, really awesome story and it worked really well as a two-parter!

C2Sanon

Captioner Summary: C2Sanon is the next captioner we get to review, and yet again is someone who has been producing caps in my contests for a while. C2Sanon specializes in sissy caps and definitely likes a good interracial cap. Unfortunately there is no website to link to as I don't believe that C2Sanon runs one, which is a shame because he always produces such excellent caps!

Things I'd Like to See:The only thing that comes to mind (outside of encouraging a blog to house all of C2Sanon's excellent caps!) is that I'd love to see more bimbo-focused caps. There were some caps I loved way back in the Identity Crisis, Father/Son, and Pink Contests that were definitely more bimboish in nature, and I think it'd be great to see more of that again!

Caption Review #1: The first cap comes from the Rivalry contest, which I liked for a few reasons. First, the "rivalry" in this case was between two girlfriends feminizing their boyfriends, which was a little unique relative to other plots in this contest. Secondly, I loved the way that the story progressed. The details about how things moved from "First Salon Trip" to "Plastic Surgery" finally to the point where they are pitchig their own reality TV show was awesome! Plus, little fun details like having their names changed to "Danni Diklover" and "Jenni Jizzbreath" or how they are pitching their idea to porn giants "Brazzers" really adds to a great overall cap.

Caption Review #2: The next selection from the Halloween contest was one of the most creative ideas in that entire contest. The premise of Halloween becoming "Day of Pretty Panties" because all men over the age of 18 are hypnotized into feminizing themselves is super interesting, and the backstory behind it was well designed. I also really liked the text font and the image selection (both because of the image itself and how it matched the story). Finally, the concluding line was really strong, tying the entire story together really nicely and matching it with the contest theme extremely well.

Caption Review #3: Last but not least we have to explore an interracial cap from C2Sanon! This particular one comes from the Love contest and is a bit unique because it discusses a curse that is "forcing" the feminized white boi to marry a black man. However, the dialogue and progress of the cap is very much along the lines of a traditional interracial cap, complete with an assertive black alpha male that coerces the white boi into explicit acts which he apparently begins to enjoy. All in all, the strong dialogue is representative of a lot of C2Sanon's caps, and one of the many things that makes his writing so strong.

Donna

Captioner Summary: Donna is someone who has been participating in contests with me almost as long as I've been doing contests. I also feel a special connection with her because I end up doing the layout and formatting for almost all of her caps, and while I'd encourage her to try it herself, I must admit I do enjoy trying to reflect the quality of her stories in the layout. Donna comes up with some of the most interesting stories and really excels at making shorter captions with a powerful punch. There isn't really a theme that stands out in my mind (although I do know she loves a good retro caption), but whatever she writes is always enjoyable.

Things I'd Like to See:As I mentioned, while I do like to put the caps together, I want Donna to try the layout herself sometimes, just because that can have just as much impact on a caption as the writing itself. Other than that, just keep up the good work!

Caption Review #1: Donna's first cap comes from the Pageant contest and took a unique twist on the idea. In this case the man is dreaming about being a beauty queen...and sometimes something naughtier. But what made this cap stand out is the strong dialogue - it creates two very distinct voices while also telling the story really well. The fact that I love this image doesn't hurt either :)

Caption Review #2: The next choice comes from the Wedding contest and is a great representation of a shorter caption that Donna is so good at. This entire caption is just two long sentences - the first sets the scene and gives you a hint of the feminization aspect of the cap, while the second ties in the image with the plot and confirms some the suspicions of feminization. What I like about caps like this is that it gives you enough detail to let you get a picture of what's going on, but leaves enough room for your imagination to fill in the details however you want. It makes the caption unique for each reader, which is really cool!

Caption Review #3: The final cap comes from the Serial Transformer contest and has a lot of little things that I like. First, the theme matches the image - I intentionally added this pic because of the syringe, which Donna plays into nicely by detailing what the injections are doing. Secondly, the dialogue is very strong. I know I say it a lot about a lot of good caps, but this one specifically use what I like to refer to as the "explanation/reaction" dichotomy, because one of the characters has longer lines that fill in a lot of the details, while the other one has shorter outburst that give you a sense of their emotional state. It's a great technique and executed well in this case. Finally, I really appreciate a lot of the little details/surprises. The fact that the transformer used to be male, the part about "the more feminine you act, the less painful it gets," the transformed man begging for more, the surprised reaction of the transformer at the end...all of these things made an impression on mean, which is the sign of an excellent cap!

Ian

Captioner Summary: Speaking of people who have been around with me for a while, I want to give a shout out to Ian and his blog. I think Ian is one of the most awesome people in the community, because he participates in almost every blog I follow with frequent comments, encouragement, and advice. I feel blessed to have him stop by for contests on the regular, because not only is his work good but his presence is even better. In terms of captioning, Ian has a distinct font and layout that you can see below, but true to his involvement in so many corners of the TG captioning community, his themes are numerous and excellent.

Things I'd Like to See:I like Ian's unique layout style, but sometimes the caps or font can get a little small, so making sure that those quality caps are increased to the size that we can all enjoy them is nice :) From a writing/story perspective, I'd like to see Ian's take on some of my classic series. He inspired the Mildew High Dress Code series I did and has been around long enough to know a lot of my series...would be curious to see what takes on them he could produce.

Caption Review #1: Ian's first cap comes from the Serial Transformer contest and features a good idea that is structured really well. First, Ian sets the scene as to what has been happening with "The Dresser" and leads into an interview. Dialogue naturally follows from this and Ian does an excellent job with a version of the "explanation/reaction" dialogue style I discussed with Donna's cap. In this case, the interviewer "reacts" to the explanations of the two 'men' and furthers the conversation with more questions. Of course, the premise itself is fantastic - the idea of men willing living their lives as females to avoid being feminized is a delightful irony that the interview notes in the final question.

Caption Review #2: This selection from the Pageant contest is next because of the way it creatively intertwines the image and the plot. I would have never seen the blond in the background making a duck face and holding up two peace signs and thought of the idea to make it a reference to the number of blowjobs given. It was a super neat connection that is really the focus of the piece, as the short caption means a quick punchline that Ian delivers quite effectively. I think this is a great example of letting the image inspire the story, so props to Ian for thinking outside the box!

Caption Review #3: The third choice comes from the Wedding contest and was chosen for a few reasons. First, I enjoyed the layout choices for this cap - this piece had a pink border that was noticeable but didn't demand attention, meaning that it was serving it's purpose of framing the image and text without distracting from it. Secondly, the image and dialogue style matches really well - you can totally envision two well-dressed women breezily discussing the feminization of their ex-husband at his wedding through the way the dialogue is written, which happens to be what the image is! Finally, the story idea was simple yet effective - only wish was that we got to hear from the bride's mother on what she thought about her "daughter" being married off!

Ted

Captioner Summary: Finally, we end this batch of captions with someone who has put an immense amount of time and effort into producing caps for my contests and has really grown as a captioner over that time. This individual is Ted, who produced a whopping 66 caps in 9 contests (for context, that's more than the next three most prolific captioners combined)! Ted's style focuses on laying text over images, which was involved from single lines to text in shaded boxes that make his wonderful stories pop out beautifully. Due to Ted's extreme production for the ten contests that were being reviewed, I'll be bumping up to five reviews as a small token of my appreciation for his work!

Things I'd Like to See:As with many other captions who's work I have not discovered on some other media site, I think Ted is more than capable of putting caps on a separate site (if he hasn't done so already!), and give the volume of his work that could really get some views! From a captioning standpoint, I really enjoy Ted's series and would love to see his productivity be honed into a 6-10 part series. I think you can develop really interesting themes/characters in longer series, so maybe that might be something to try sometime!

Caption Review #1: The first selection comes from the Pageant Contest and was chosen because of its unique premise/organizational style. The concept is set as a report on a prison pageant, which is done effectively by leading in with a small text box in the upper left and then delving into the majority of the text at the bottom of the screen. I really like the idea of a prison pageant with a high risk/reward basis, as the winner might get out but the losers are stuck with their mightily improved bodies with other prisoners. The background of a beauty-queen-turned-warden was also a nice touch to tie the premise together.

Caption Review #2: The second cap comes from the Love contest, which is appropriate because of the sweet premise of the cap. It's based on two brothers double dating as women, with one doing so in order to support his transgender brother - it reminded me of story called "Brothers and Sisters" by Rogergirl which I really adore, which is perhaps why I enjoyed this cap so much :)

Caption Review #3: The third choice is actually a 5-part series done for the Serial Transformer contest. Ted has done a lot of excellent series (one of his strengths, in my opinion!) and this one is no exception. The first cap is great because it sets the background for the entire series and gives us the unique idea of a secret agent serial transformer. The next four caps are all standalone caps (although you could argue that the final ties into the overall theme more than the others), which is nice in a series because the reader can enjoy each one while still understanding the underlying theme. It also allowed Ted to use a lot of different images that touch on different storylines and bases for agent operations. Finally, I did like the way the final cap was a little more holisitic in discussing efforts to keep the program under wraps, which in turn provided a nice bookend to the first caption.

Caption Review #4: Cap number four was plucked from the Wedding contest and was one of the few caps to tackle the theme of bachelorette parties. I like the way that Ted tackled this theme - its written as an advertisement for bodysuits to be used during a bachelor party, which allows the first few sentences to provide general details that you can imagine the possibilities for. However, the cap also references the specific "party girls package" chosen by the group of "ladies" in the image, which was fun extra detail to imagine. I would have liked a little more detail as to what went on, but considering that it was structured as an advertisement I think it functioned well as written.

Caption Review #5: The 5th and final cap in the entire review is a Holiday contest cap. This cap has so many little things in it that I really like. The first is a simple line of dialogue from one of the transformed bimbos which shows his concern with his new appearance. This follows quickly with a description of how the other man is a secretly an up-and-coming TS pornstar, which is not only sexy but contrasts the uncertainty of the one friend with the willingness of the other. The idea of a sexy twin duo is a well used but always good trope, but the fact that the nervous friend is hypnotized to be the other sexy "Suxcoxs" with the willing TS pornstar ties in so well with the setup in the beginning and makes this a truly special cap. Plus, I LOVE this image and was really please with what Ian made with it :)

2 comments:

Thank you so much for you kind words. Sorry i have missed a few contests real life is just one kick after the other. I have not forgotten Mildew high set and would love to follow up you series "The will " i well get there one day.

Your review and great criticism is greatly appreciated. I actually thought I could do a better job on one or two of those, make them a little hotter. Guess its something to remember for the future. Thank you for hosting this fantastic site and honoring myself and all these caption makers. You'll always be the pro to me though.